Boston

New Murder Charge for Man Caught Jumping From Roxbury High-Rise

Michael Perry had previously been charged with assault with a dangerous weapon for allegedly attacking a police officer

Michael Perry, seen at left in a Boston courtroom on Friday, Dec. 16, 2022, is accused of killing a man found at the 12th-floor Roxbury apartment seen at right. Perry tried jumping out of the window and had to be rescued on Sunday, Dec. 11, when officers entered the apartment and discovered the body, authorities say.

The man who allegedly tried jumping out of a 12th-story apartment where a dead body was found in Boston's Roxbury neighborhood Sunday has now been charged with murder.

Michael Perry, 37, was ordered held without bail in Boston Municipal Court Friday afternoon, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. They identified the man who died as Jose Aponte.

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Aponte, 43, lived in the building on Northampton Street that Perry tried to jump out of, allegedly to evade police. Officers discovered the dead body after arriving at the apartment for a well-being check shortly after 8 p.m. Sunday, because Aponte's family hadn't heard from him since Friday, officials said.

Someone had texted Aponte's boss over the weekend saying he was sick, but the writing didn't sound like Aponte's usual style, the family had said. Officers who went to the apartment knocked but didn't get a response, prosecutors said.

Getting building maintenance to open the door, the officers found Aponte's body; later, a SWAT team went inside, which is when Perry tried to jump out of the window and had to be rescued, according to prosecutors. They've previously said the SWAT team was called in to try and de-escalate the situation, and that Perry was left dangling after getting caught on something outside the building.

A man who tried to jump from a 12th-story window after being found in an apartment with a dead body faced a judge Wednesday.

Officers were able to be pull him back in from the floor below, and he was taken to the hospital, police have said.

After being hospitalized, Perry was charged Wednesday with assault with a dangerous weapon for allegedly attacking a police officer.

That day, a prosecutor confirmed to NBC10 Boston that Perry is the same man who was seen on video in 2017 jumping out of a South Boston hotel window and onto an awning before being arrested by a SWAT team.

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